Don't You Dair!
by svenjen
Summary: This IS a Chair story with a short initial DAIR pairing. Nate knew the thought of Blair with Dan would drive Chuck nuts. That was a good thing, he thought. After what he'd put Blair through, Chuck deserved it! And this time, he'd get it good!
1. Chapter 1

**Don't You Dair!**

**A/N:** Ok, so even though we haven't yet met this Raina girl, I hate her already! I classify her along with Eva, Jenny, Vanessa and any other troll who has the nerve to fuck Chuck! He belongs to Blair! Hence the need for my little story.

Now I'm not a big fan of the spoilers, so I am not too sure how this is going to unfold on the series. I would think that Chuck bringing another troll to town would send Blair straight over the edge, or into Humphrey's eager arms. And although I despise the thought of a Dair coupling, I think it would be more than Chuck could tolerate, no matter who he's fucking. And after his poor behaviour again this season, he deserves a little discomfort. So, on with my little story. I hope you enjoy it.

**Warning:** This IS a CHAIR story but has a short initial DAIR pairing, so work through the pain, we'll get there!.

**Chapter 1.**

Long legs. Silky, chocolate skin. Smart. Delightful personality. Raina was a sight to behold on Chuck's arm. He paraded her proudly through the function at the Empire. His dark beauty. She was a treasure for sure.

To Blair Waldorf, however, she was another slap in the face.

Chuck had avoided Blair's calls throughout the holidays, leaving her to face another Christmas alone with nobody but Dan Humphrey for company. It was pathetic.

Not that she was complaining about Dan. He had actually become Blair's friend over the last couple of months since both Chuck and Serena had disappeared. They had spent part of their lonely holidays together milling over their lives and decided they actually had a lot in common.

But Dan wasn't Chuck.

Blair had known Chuck was back in town by the sightings on Gossip Girl. These same sightings showed him with the beautiful woman. But he hadn't called Blair to tell her that he'd returned. Again he was avoiding her calls, their friendship, her. And it broke her heart.

She knew that she had been the one to suggest a distance and even told him he didn't have to wait for her while she 'found herself.' But she'd never expected him to shut her out of his life completely again, to disappear as he had done in the past. And now he had the balls to return to town and then parade around with yet another troll on his arm! She was devastated.

As Chuck made his way around the room he finally saw her watching them. She was standing with Dan and Nate near the refreshment table. He grinned as he escorted his new girlfriend in their direction, eager to introduce her to everyone.

Blair's heart almost stopped when she noticed them approaching her. She wanted to run. She wanted to scream. She wanted to tear the eyes out of the filthy skank that he dared to parade around in front of their friends and family... Another Eva of sorts.

But she decided to don her mask and pretend that her presence tonight did nothing to upset her. After all, Chuck had told her they could never really be friends. So she'd pretend she no longer really cared for him, as he obviously no longer cared for her. And despite the hurt that caused, she would not let him know she was hurting from him again.

"Hey, man," Nate chirped as he hugged Chuck in greeting. "It's good to see you back. How're things down under?"

"Things were actually pretty interesting from a business point of view," Chuck replied to his friend. "But that's a long story best discussed in other company. However, I happened to have picked up some important items, including this beautiful woman I have on my arm," he commented. "Raina, these are my friends, Nate and Blair. Nate and Blair, I'd like you to meet Raina, my girlfriend." He deliberately ignored and refrained from introducing her to Dan.

"How lovely to meet you both," Raina replied as she reached for Nate and then Blair's hands to shake.

Blair bit the inside of her cheek which she swore had just received another slap from Chuck. 'Friends? Right! She forced a smile as she shook the woman's hand. "It's lovely to meet you, Raina," she delivered with false pleasantry.

Raina cocked her head to the side. She looked at Dan and asked. "And this is?"

Blair blushed. "This is Dan Humphrey, Chuck's step brother."

"Chuck, I thought you said you were an only child?" she queried as she put her hand out to shake Dan's outstretched hand.

"Long story," he muttered as he felt the color rise in his face. He noticed Dan's face was turning red as well.

Blair felt that it was time to leave for several reasons. One, she thought if she saw Chuck and that troll together any longer, she'd puke. Two, if she didn't want there to be an ugly step brother incident at this function, she needed to remove Dan fast.

"Well it was nice to have met you, Raina, but Dan and I are late for another engagement. So if you'll excuse us," she said as she took Dan by the arm and steered him off in another direction. "Chuck, it was nice seeing you again. Welcome home," she said softly without looking at him.

"Well aren't they an adorable couple?" Raina commented as the two of them left.

"They aren't a couple," Chuck growled as he watched Blair lead Humphrey out into the lobby of the hotel.

"Well, I'm not so sure about that," Nate commented with a grin.

"What do you mean, Nate?" Chuck asked in alarm as he watched Dan put his hand on Blair's lower back as the two got into the elevator. Suddenly he felt like he needed to vomit.

"I mean they've been together constantly for the last two months," Nate relayed. "Dan is over at her apartment all the time. I think something is going on between the two of them."

Chuck didn't know what to think or do. Surely of all people in this city, Blair Waldorf would not date Dan Humphrey!

"Well I think they're adorable together," Raina commented. "They look like a match to me."

Chuck was pissed. He grabbed Raina's hand and led her away from Nate.

Nate smiled. He knew that Chuck's dragging Raina here tonight had hurt Blair again. Therefore it was only fitting to rub Dan in Chuck's face. After all, Chuck was even more possessive of Blair than Blair was of him, despite who he pretended to be with. He knew the thought of Blair with Dan would drive Chuck nuts. And he thought that that was a good thing. After what he had put Blair through, he deserved it.

**XOXO**

**A/N:** Ok, short but it gets the plot in motion. Dair I continue? Please review.

**XOXO**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**A/N:** Wow…. What a response. It looks like there is enough interest for me to continue…. Thanks for all of you who reviewed.

**XOXO**

**Chapter 2**

"And where exactly is this other engagement we have tonight?" Dan asked with a chuckle and a smile as he followed Blair briskly down the street away from the Empire. He had no clue where they were supposed to be heading, and was sure she had no particular destination in mind either. He also knew that Blair Waldorf had just saved him from another potential embarrassing public incident with Chuck Bass. It was nice to know she had his back.

But when she didn't answer his question with her usual smart aleck-like banter, he knew something was wrong. He put his hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Hey, Blair, are you alright?"

He turned her towards him and saw the tears that were streaming down Blair's face. She shook her head. "No," she whispered.

Dan pulled her into a hug. He was such a dumb-ass sometimes. Of course she wasn't alright! She had just seen her ex-boyfriend parade around some floozy right in front of her face. He knew Blair still loved Chuck. He didn't understand why, but he realised she'd been hurt more than enough by the guy. And tonight he'd hurt her once again.

"I'm sorry," he told her as he hugged her tighter.

Blair latched onto Dan and let the tears spill out as she sobbed onto his chest. She needed the release and was grateful that Dan was there to support her. She held on to him for dear life as he held her, his head buried into her curls, whispering to her that it was going to be alright.

To any passer-by it looked like a couple of young lovers having an intimate moment on the street. Neither of them noticed the camera phone of one such passer-by who recognised the couple in their embrace. The photo was immediately sent off to Gossip Girl.

Nate, who was still at the Empire function, opened his cell phone to receive the newest Gossip Girl blast. The picture with its caption shocked him. He grinned knowing that Chuck would see it too. He had no doubt that Dan was just comforting an understandably upset Blair, but the photo did look incriminating. And he knew it would make Chuck flip.

He looked over to witness his cocky friend blanch as he obviously just read the newest posting himself. Nate watched as Chuck's jaw and fists all clenched at the same time.

"Excuse me," Chuck said to Raina as he quickly made his way over to Nate.

"Did you see this?" he asked his friend as he held up the Gossip Girl posting for Nate to see. He looked around the room and noticed a few other people were looking at their phones, then at Chuck, and then back at their phones again. Obviously several people were aware.

"Yeah, I didn't think Blair was into such public displays of affection," Nate replied innocently. He turned his back to hide his grin and purposefully began to walk away from Chuck.

Chuck grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. "Doesn't it bother you to see Blair with that, that thing?" he barked at Nate. "How could you have let this happen?"

Nate was getting angry. Was Chuck serious? "How could I have let what happen, Chuck? Let Blair have a life? You mean how could YOU have let this happen? You really are something, you know. You cast her aside like she's trash again after treating her like shit all fall, and then come back here parading another woman in front of her face! Why shouldn't she be with Dan? You let her know in more ways than one that you don't want her anymore. So now she has the right to be with anyone she wants, including Humphrey."

Nate pulled himself away from Chuck's grasp. "You know," he added, "Maybe Dan will be the one to know how to treat her right. Neither of us ever seemed to be able to." He walked away deciding he didn't want to be at the function any longer. Chuck made him sick. He was pretty sure that Dan and Blair didn't have a thing going on, but now, he decided, maybe they should. Maybe Dan would treat Blair like she deserved to be treated.

**XOXO**

Dan escorted Blair back to her and Serena's suite. "Are you going to be ok, Blair?" he asked with concern as he plopped himself down on the carpet in front of the fireplace in Blair's den. This was his favourite new place to hang out at Blair's. Her living room was too formal for him and her furniture was lovely, but not Humphrey friendly. He was afraid of messing it up, so he often chose to sit on the floor. It made Blair laugh.

Blair switched on the fire for him, knowing he enjoyed its comfort. She sighed and shook her head. "I don't know why what he does still hurts me so much. I ought to be used to it by now," she replied as she sat in the loveseat in front of Dan.

He turned to look at her. "You guys have been in love forever, Blair. That's why it hurts so much. And I know you still love him, even though you insist you don't."

Blair stared at her hands in her lap. She felt more tears breach their hold and roll down her face. "I'm sorry," she apologised. She hated appearing weak.

Dan reached out and took her hand in his. "You have nothing to be sorry for," he told her. "I get it, ok? I mean look at how he's been treating you this year. I know you love him, Blair, but the guy really is a prick."

She looked up at Dan and smiled. She removed his hand from hers and wiped her eyes. "Yeah, well I guess we both know what it's like to be crushed by the love of our lives, don't we?"

Dan frowned. "Ughh!" he grunted. "Serena really pisses me off. I really thought we were going to get back together this time. I can't believe she ran off with that guy." He was angry. Serena hadn't been heard from for the whole holiday either. Both he and Blair had been worried sick about her. He got that she was pissed off at Lily, but he deserved better than that from her, as did Blair. They both had felt abandoned by Serena again.

"I'm actually pretty used to people just ignoring me now," Blair stated defectively. "It's happened practically all of my life."

"Hey, well I'm here now, so you don't need to feel that way any more, ok?" Dan told her.

She smiled down at him and tussled his hair. "Yes, you've actually turned out to be a pretty good friend," she admitted to him with a smile. "I really am sorry I treated you so poorly over the last few years, Dan. You didn't deserve it."

Dan smiled up at her. "Well thanks, Blair; I didn't deserve it most of the time," he agreed. "But on occasion, I probably did."

This made Blair laugh. She appreciated his honesty. Dan may come from a different world than the Upper East Side, but they both had a lot of the same values, and honesty was one of them.

He stood up and told her he needed to get home. As she saw him to the door, he placed his arms around her in a big hug and kissed her softly on the temple. "Try to get some sleep, Blair," he said as her headed out the door. "I'll call you tomorrow."

**XOXO**

But for the life of him, Chuck just couldn't get the image of Blair and Dan in an embrace out of his head. It was driving him crazy. He found that he was unable to stay at the function soon after Nate had left. There were too many people eying him, looking for some kind of reaction. He refused to give them one.

He tried his best to be attentive to his date, but was having a hard time covering up that he was a little more than annoyed.

But Raina wasn't stupid. She knew something was up. "What's wrong, Chuck?" she asked him for the third time in a row. "I know something is bothering you. Does it have anything to do with why everyone seems to be watching you right now?"

"It's really nothing, Raina," he smiled as he placed a little kiss on her cheek. "But I feel a killer headache coming on, so I think we should probably go if that's alright with you."

Raina smiled at him. "Of course that's all right, darling," she replied. She'd just assumed they go up to his penthouse and get to bed anyways. The man was amazing in the sac.

Chuck had escorted her up to his suite and then insisted she go to bed without him. He lay down on the couch and placed a cold facecloth over his pounding temples. "Sorry," he apologised to her, "But I'm really not feeling that well right now. I hope you understand."

She leaned down and placed a kiss on his mouth, lingering her lips a little longer than necessary, hoping he'd reciprocate. But he didn't. She sighed as she straightened up. "Come to bed soon," she urged.

Chuck lay there and tried willing his body to relax. What he really needed was sleep. He wished he could will his body into wanting sex right now, it always helped him relax. And Raina was a pretty decent lay. But for some reason, he just didn't think he could get it up tonight. He grabbed his jacket off the arm of the chesterfield where he'd thrown it earlier and covered himself up. He sighed heavily and tried to force himself to not think about _them_. He just wanted to go to sleep.

But the sleep still wouldn't come. He couldn't stop thinking of how Blair had come to Dan's rescue tonight. Or of how she'd allowed him to place his hand on the small of her back. Or of how she had looked in his arms on the Gossip Girl post. It was making his headache worse, and was burning a hole in his belly.

He knew he's been a prick to Blair again. He just couldn't seem to help it. She had told him she wanted to be friends; that it was ok to move on. It didn't seem to bother her how much this had crushed him. He knew she wanted to find herself, but she didn't think she could do that while being his girlfriend. Well fuck her! She'd told him to move on, so he had.

He'd decided to refuse contact from her over the holidays. This was deliberate. He knew if he talked to her, he'd crumble and beg her to come back to him. And although he was lonely for her and tempted, he held firm in his resolve. There were, in fact, over thirty unanswered voice messages and texts on his phone from her that he hadn't even listened to.

Yet he refused to delete them. He just didn't think he could handle hearing her voice then. He knew it had been cruel and that he not replying would hurt her, but he didn't care. Or rather, he couldn't let himself care. He also knew that hooking up with Raina would also likely crush Blair again, just as it had with Eva. But he needed to prove a point. She hadn't destroyed him and he could, would, and did move on.

But unfortunately for Chuck, he hadn't prepared himself for what the flip side of his decision might mean. The thought of Blair with any other guy was out of his realm of ability. And the thought of her with Dan Humphrey, was poison to his very mind.

He thought about Nate's searing words earlier tonight. _'You know,' _he had said_, 'Maybe Dan will be the one to know how to treat her right. Neither of us ever seemed to be able to.'_ His buddy sure knew how to throw a punch. Nate's words stung more than he could have imagined.

He couldn't think about it any more, it was making him ill. He slowly made his way off of the couch and snuck into his bathroom, noting gratefully that Raina was asleep, and he had to throw up.

**XOXO**

**A/N: **Hmmm, Chuck seems a little urked! Isn't that too bad! If you liked it, please review it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

For the next couple of days things remained fairly calm. Chuck poured his mind into work. He still had a lot on his plate to do to try and fight Lily for control of his father's company. It was a welcome diversion from thinking about his recent upset. He worked late into the night and would return to Raina too tired to service her. Besides, his heart wasn't really in it these days, it was still in shock over Dan and Blair.

Finally he convinced himself there was nothing going on between the two. Maybe he was reading more into the Gossip Girl blast than was really true, he thought. After all, it was Gossip Girl. He began to let himself relax a little more and eventually was able to perform in bed once again, as long as he kept his thoughts off of the tiny brunette who still controlled a very large piece of his heart.

**XOXO**

Nate sat in the café waiting for Dan to meet him for coffee. He was a little annoyed that his Brooklyn pal was running late. "What took you?" he asked when Dan finally slid into the booth across from him half an hour later than expected.

"Sorry, I got caught up in a book I have to read for pre-session study. I lost track of the time," he apologised. "Why'd you want to meet up today anyways?"

"Well, to be honest with you," Nate began as he held up the incriminating Gossip Girl blast from a few nights ago to him, "It's because of this."

"Whoah!" Dan declared as he grabbed the phone out of Dan's hand and gawked at it. "Um, I haven't seen that!" he grimaced, knowing that more than a few people might had probably taken that incident the wrong way.

Dan had deliberately been avoiding anything Gossip Girl for weeks deciding he was sick of the stories and bullshit that was often posted there. When Blair almost had a nervous breakdown after reading that Chuck was back in town with a new beau, she had unsubscribed to the site as well, insisting she was sick of all the garbage too. So neither of them had seen that last particular post.

"You know that's not really as it looks, right?" he asked Nate. "I mean Blair and I are just friends. She was upset after Chuck….. Well, you know, after the function the other night."

"It's ok, Dan. I believe you," Nate laughed finding Dan's defensiveness kind of funny. "I think it's great that you and Blair are finally getting to be friends."

"But you know that's it, right," Dan asked again. He was pretty nervous not wanting to step on anyone's toes. To him, Blair had always been taboo. She was one UES girl that was strictly off limits. After all, Nate had dated Blair for years, and he remembered how upset he'd become after she had started to see Chuck a couple of years back. He didn't want his friend pissed off at him.

"Relax, man," Nate laughed. "It's alright. I believe you, ok," he reassured his friend. They sat drinking their coffee for a moment in silence. "But have you've thought about it, right?" he asked Dan.

"Thought about it? Thought about what?" Dan asked as he looked at Nate in confusion. And then it dawned on him. "About me dating Blair you mean? Are you serious?" Dan asked with a nervous laugh.

"Yes, I'm serious," Nate replied with a smirk. "Well have you?"

"Um, Wow!" Dan answered nervously. "Me and Blair Waldorf….." He drew in a breath and appeared to think about it for a moment. "Wow, um… I don't know, maybe, …., why?" he responded nervously.

"I don't know, Dan, Why not?" he asked. "You've been spending a lot of time together recently. You have a lot in common. You're both single and probably kind of lonely… You're a smart guy, you do the math. I mean look at her. She's gorgeous. You're a guy, you must have at least considered it," Nate coaxed.

Dan blushed. "Well I guess I have considered the possibility," he confessed. "I mean you're right. She's beautiful as all hell, and has a dynamite body! But no, I could never…..," he continued with a red face.

"Why not?" Nate asked. "I mean really, why not consider it. You guys might do pretty well together," he added.

"Why not?" Dan asked rhetorically. "Well, let's see," he began. "Ummmm, She's Blair Waldorf and I'm Dan/ Brooklyn Humphrey for a start, I still have feelings for Serena, Blair still loves Chuck, and Chuck will fucking kill me if I so much as look at her. I'm sure I can add on a few others if you like," he continued. And then he blanched as the thought crossed his mind. "Chuck… Oh my God, Chuck! Has Chuck seen that post?" Dan asked in alarm as the color continued to drain out of him.

Nate nodded.

"Fuck!" Dan yelled loud enough to earn disapproving looks from some of the other patrons in the café and from the waiter who had served their coffee. "I'm a dead man! A fucking dead man!" he groaned. He knew how jealous Chuck could be over Blair. This was not good.

"Hey listen, Nate said, shaking his head as he tried to calm down his friend. "So what if Chuck knows. You know he has a 'new girlfriend,'" he sneered. "We both saw how he flashed her under Blair's nose the other night. He did it deliberately to hurt her again." He waited until he saw Dan nod his head in agreement. Good, they were on the same page with this. "Man, Chuck's my friend and all, but Blair doesn't deserve to be treated like that from him any more. He's been a real jerk this last year."

"You can say that again," Dan admitted recalling exactly how big of a jerk Chuck had indeed been, not only to Blair, but to his little sister as well (**A/N**: **TROLL!**…. Sorry, but I hate her too!). "So what are you suggesting?" Dan asked.

"Well, if you like her, like I think you might, then maybe you should think about kicking your friendship up a notch," Nate suggested.

"Wow, I don't know," Dan replied. He stopped and thought about it for a moment and then cocked his head and looked at Nate. "You know we do get along pretty well….., but I'm not sure if Blair would go for it." he said. "It's probably not a good idea anyways, Nate. I'm sure it would just cause trouble."

"Well I think you should consider it," Nate urged. "You guys might actually be pretty good together."

**XOXO**

Later that night, Dan was supposed to take Blair out to see a French foreign film in some tiny old theatre. It was an epic love story that had won several awards and both had been looking forward to seeing it. The story was very sad and had Blair crying at several points, and had Dan snivelling a couple of times himself.

When Blair reached over and took his hand in hers, at one point, Dan hitched his breath. The gesture both surprised and startled him. Before today he never would have given it a second thought. They were friends, after all and the movie was sad. It was an innocent and understandable gesture. But since his discussion with Nate earlier that afternoon, it now made Dan's head swim.

He had tried putting the thought of him and Blair together as a couple out of his head. It was not water he would deliberately choose to tread in. But now, as she squeezed his hand in the theatre through her tears, the cogs in his brain just wouldn't stop turning. He had a thousand reasons why he should stay away from Blair Waldorf, but each reason seemed to have an argument to counter it.

She was from the UES, he was from Brooklyn….. But their intelligence and values were equal.

He loved Serena, she loved Chuck….. But they were both single at this time.

She could be a snotty, controlling bitch… But she could also be loving, feminine and generous.

He loved Serena, she loved Chuck….. But they were both terribly lonely right now

Chuck would kill him for touching her… But Chuck was a prick who had another girlfriend and didn't deserve her.

He loved Serena, she loved Chuck….. But she was so fucking beautiful and sexy and available.

She had taunted him and looked down at him for years…. But she treated him with respect now.

He loved Serena, she loved Chuck….. But the thought of her body under his hands made it truly difficult for him to breath.

The list went on and on. Bottom of the line, now that Nate had put the idea in Dan's head, it was all he could do to not think about Blair in that manor. He knew they both had other loves who were not available to them at the time, but they were right in a lot of other ways. And he really did like her. He swallowed a lump in his throat and felt himself grow hot under the collar and a bit tight in the pants as he tried to focus on the film and not the girl beside him.

"That was beautiful," Blair commented at the end of the film as she took a handkerchief from her purse and wiped her eyes. "Didn't you think so, Dan?"

"What? oOh yeah, it was great," he replied with a scowl. "Um, do you want to go and get a drink or something?" he asked her as he looked at his watch. "It's still pretty early."

"Sure," Blair replied with a smile. She was sincerely enjoying Dan's company. "We're right by the Palace, why don't we head there for one?" she asked.

Blair wasn't too worried about running into Chuck at the Palace hotel. She knew it would be safe. He tended to frequent other avenues these days and she doubted that he'd drag Raina along to one of his old drinking grounds.

Once at the Palace the two of them settled into a booth and ordered drinks. Blair scowled as he took a swig of his beer. "We really need to curve your palate, Humphrey," she laughed as she picked up her own martini.

Dan laughed at her and cocked his head. "You can take the boy out of Brooklyn….," he began with a twinkle in his eye.

"…. But you can't take the Brooklyn out of the boy," she completed. "Fair enough, Humphrey," she laughed. She began to chat on and on about the film they had just seen and Dan agreed to whatever she was saying without adding much to the conversation. After all, he'd hardly paid attention to the film after Blair had held his hand.

After awhile Blair suggested they dance to a popular bouncy tune that she rather enjoyed that was playing. Dan agreed and they headed to the dance floor where they danced away, having a great time with other young people on the floor. When the music finally changed to a slow song, Blair turned to head back to the table. Dan took her hand and held her back. He postured like he wanted to waltz with her.

She smiled and went into his arms. "Why not," she replied. Blair sighed as she rested her head against his chest. Dan held her close and buried his head into her curls, causing gooseflesh to rise on Blair's skin. It shocked her to have him this close to her, but surprisingly, she found it was rather comforting to be held like that once again. She decided to not buy into it too much and allowed herself the freedom to relax and feel comfort in a man's arms.

Before the dance was over, several people sent pictures of the two of them in each others arms into Gossip Girl once again.

**XOXO**

Chuck was just heading back to the Empire from a long day / evening of work when the blast came out. He immediately had Arthur turn the limo around and head to the Palace. "Son of a bitch!" he cursed under his breath. "What am I going to do now?"

**XOXO**

**AN:** Poor Arthur, what that man must go through! I swear one day I'm going to write a short fic from Arthur's point of view about a day in the life of Chuck's limo driver. _"Arthur, we're going to be needing plenty of condoms for the immersion therapy" _OMG, tooo funny! (But where is that Chuck these days?)

If you like it, please review it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: This will be the last one for 2010…. Happy New Year everyone!**

**A/N:** For those of you who are confused…. YES, this is a CHAIR fic, I promise… but yes, you will have to experience some Chuck pain and a little Dair hell to get there. I am trying to show how I would like them to play this upcoming issue out on the show because it's going to happen. Believe me, Dair sickens me too, but not a much as Chuck and his collection of trolls does (Lets see….Raina, Eva, Jenny, Vanessa… who's next, Juliette?). If you've ever read my stuff before, I AM A CHAIR FAN 100% So please, have some faith… If you can't stomach the Dair bits, please skip them or unsubscribe to this story, because it is about to happen! Maybe then, Chuck will realise what he's lost and think Blair is worth fighting for!

**So warning: This one Will be painful!**

**Chapter 4**

Chuck arrived just after Dan and Blair began slow dancing to the next song. He felt his heart stop and a thousand needles pierce his eyes when he saw them on the floor with a dozen or so other couples.

He stood in shock watching Dan caress Blair's back as she lay contentedly pressed against his chest. It was more than he could bear. Chuck was so stunned in fact, that he couldn't think. All ration ceased to exist for him as he blindly marched through the waltzing couples on pure impulse, and grabbed Blair by the shoulder to spin her around. He took her hand and began to pull her across the dance floor.

"Chuck! Just what do you think you're doing?" she screeched as he dragged her along towards the door of the Palace.

"I need to talk to you now, Blair!" he snapped as he continued to pull her along against her will. "Get in the car!"

"No, Chuck! Let me go!" she demanded when she realised he intended on pushing her into the waiting limo with him. The guy was clearly out of his mind, and she was scared.

"Chuck, let her go!" Dan yelled from behind them. He'd been following them in irritation with curiosity but had begun to panic when he saw that Chuck intended to force Blair into the limo.

Chuck ignored Dan as he shoved Blair into the back seat and slammed the door.

"I said let her go!" Dan yelled again with more aggression. "She doesn't want to go with you!" He put his hand on Chuck's shoulder to get his attention.

It obviously worked, because as soon as he touched him, Chuck turned around and slammed his fist into Dan's face. "Fuck off, Humphrey!" he yelled. "This doesn't concern you!"

Chuck turned back around and was attempting to get into the car himself when he felt someone grab hold of him and swing him around.

Dan swung his fist into Chuck's face and gave him a mighty shove down onto the sidewalk. "I said, let her go!"

By this time Blair had managed to get the door of the limo open and get out. She stood in shock watching as Chuck regained his composure and flew once more into Dan. "Stop it!" she yelled at the two of them, disbelieving the scene before her eyes. "Please just stop!"

The two men continued to pound the shit out of each other as Blair yelled and screamed for them to quit fighting. Finally the hotel security team intervened and pulled the two of them apart. The officers took hold of both men and dragged them back inside to the hotel's security office.

By this time a large crowd had gathered around the scene and camera phones had been clicking like crazy. Gossip Girl would surely have a field day with this!

Blair stood sobbing on the sidewalk unsure of what to do. She was so distraught about what she had just witnessed, she just couldn't believe it. She finally wandered back into the hotel lobby to where both men were being held.

Chuck was arguing with the hotel's security personal, who were still restraining him. He continued to struggle against their hold, yelling that he needed Blair.

In the meantime, Dan had been released after witnesses confirmed to security that he was only tying to protect Blair. Since he was calm and rational, they gave him a wad of tissues to hold to his bleeding nose and lip and then let him go, telling him that police might be by to question him later. He walked over to Blair and said, "They're suggesting we go before they release Chuck."

"But you're hurt!" Blair stated as she looked in horror at his bleeding nose and lip. She noticed that his eye had also begun to swell shut. She looked across to the security office at Chuck and noticed that his face was in a similar state, minus the wad of tissues. He was not calm enough, she realised, for him to have been helped yet. It hurt her to see him like that and she swallowed a lump in her throat as a fresh batch of tears began to pool in her eyes again. "You're both so hurt!"

"Yeah, he got me good!" Dan commented, "But I'll be fine. Trust me," he said, "I've had worse." He placed his hand on the small of Blair's back to escort her to a waiting taxi. "They can't hold him for too long, so we should hurry."

"Blair, please!" Chuck yelled to her as they walked past the security office on their way out of the building. "Please!"

Blair turned around to look at Chuck again as the security officers continued to restrain him. He looked almost feral as he struggled against the grasp of the larger men. His eyes held a desperation in them she hadn't seen since the night he'd come to her after his father's funeral. It tore her heart out.

As Blair looked at him the tears began to pour down her face. "I'm sorry, Chuck" she replied painfully, "but I can't." She raised her hands up to cover her face as she turned her back on him and allowed Dan to continue escorting her out and into a cab, now bawling even harder as she heard Chuck continue to desperately call for her from inside.

**XOXO**

"Well, what did you expect, man?" Nate asked his friend as he bailed him out of jail. "You were acting crazy!"

"I wasn't acting crazy until that buffoon attacked me," Chuck attempted to state through his swollen lips. "I just wanted to talk to her.

They made their way outside into Chuck's waiting limo. Nate bit back a smirk as he noticed the grimace on Arthur's face at the sight of his busted-up employer. Chuck's face was a mess!

Nate had been chilling out at home playing Gears of War and smoking a fresh bowl when the call had come in from Chuck. At first he was startled and concerned to hear that his friend was in jail for fighting. But once Chuck told him that he and Dan had gotten into it, Nate had to control his laughter. So Dan had taken his advice and stepped up with Blair. Well, good! It was about time that Chuck was knocked back a peg or two for his shitty treatment of Blair. He seriously believed the two of them really belonged together, but knew it couldn't happen if Chuck didn't appreciate what he really had and stopped hurting Blair.

He sort of felt guilty for setting them up. Sort of, but not quite. After years of hanging around with two of the UES's biggest manipulators, Nate had learned a trick or two, himself. It was about time the two of them got played for a change. And he was ok with it because in the end he felt that this might actually bring Chuck and Blair back together. If it backfired, however, then Blair would end up with Dan and Chuck would just be the victim of his own doing. It also would mean that Nate would have a clear shot with Serena without his Dan's interference….. A win/ win situation. He was kind of proud of himself!

However, he had gasped when he first saw the mess that was Chuck's face. He would need sutures to his eyebrow, and possibly his lip too, and would need a cap on at least one of his teeth. His once handsome friend currently looked like Frankenstein! He felt a little guilty, but still tried hard not to laugh as they climbed into the limo to go to the hospital. Chuck was obviously shaken!

On the way to the hospital Chuck began to tell Nate how he'd seen the newest Gossip Girl Dan and Blair posting, so he'd wanted to go and see for himself. When he found them in each other's arms, he had simply tried to talk to Blair alone, when Dan had intervened. He explained that he'd hit Dan first after Dan had grabbed him by the shoulder, but then Dan had gone all Brooklyn on him. Chuck felt he had no other choice but to strike back. The kicker was, he confessed, he'd never gotten the chance to talk to Blair and would now have to go over to her place to talk after they sewed his eye up.

"I think you need to leave Blair alone for a few days, Chuck," Nate replied knowing full well there was a lot more to his story. He knew Dan, and Dan wouldn't hit Chuck without a very good reason such as in protecting a friend or loved one.

In fact, Nate recalled, Dan had already hit Chuck in the face a few times before tonight. The first time, he recalled, was when Dan was angry with Chuck for touching his little sister (**A/N:** **Troll!)** at a party long ago, and then again last spring after he had taken her virginity like she was some common whore! (**AN:** Which we all know she really is!)

"No, Nate. I have to talk to her tonight!" Chuck insisted.

"Why do you have to talk to her, Chuck?" Nate asked in annoyance. "What could you possibly have to say to her?"

"I…, I don't know, Nate. I have to see where her head's at," he replied in frustration. "I have to keep her away from that piece of Brooklyn garbage."

"But why do you want her to stay away from Dan, Chuck?" Nate asked defiantly. "You guys have broken up, remember? You have Raina, Chuck!"

"I. Don't. Give. A. Fuck. About. Raina!" Chuck growled as he clenched his fists. He was getting upset again.

"Fine," Nate replied sarcastically. "So you don't care about Raina. But that doesn't tell me about why you think Blair shouldn't be with Dan. Why do you care so much, Chuck?" he demanded again.

"Because I fucking love her, Nathaniel!" he yelled as he punched the communication control panel in the limo.

Chuck put his hands over his face and began to bawl. "Because I still fucking love her," he cried.

"Well it's about time you realised it!" Nate replied with a smile as he placed a hand on his friend's shoulder to console him. "It's about time!"

"Were you wanting something, Mr. Bass?" Arthur asked through the intercom after he noted the erratic buzzing of several of the communication system's buttons.

"No, thank-you Arthur," Nate replied. "We're good back here."

**XOXO**

Meanwhile over in Brooklyn, Blair placed an icepack on Dan's eye as he adjusted it to fit with the corresponding bag of frozen peas that was covering his swollen nose and lip.

"I'm serious, Blair. I don't think you should be going home tonight. There's an exrta room you can stay in here," Dan expressed with concern as Blair began to gather her things to leave. "Chuck is out of his head and still might insist on seeing you tonight. It could be dangerous."

"I just don't get what Chuck's so upset about," Blair replied. She didn't want to hurt Dan's feelings, but she didn't think she could handle sleeping in this loft. She was also concerned about Chuck but wasn't sure she wanted him to come barging into her apartment again either. "It doesn't make any sense. He couldn't be bothered even talking to me over the holidays after I left him dozens of messages. So why is he acting like this now?" she asked.

"You might want to go over and check out Gossip Girl for that answer," Dan replied with a cringe.

Blair looked at Dan and huffed. "I thought we were making a statement together about ignoring her site and its garbage?"

"Well, I did…., or rather we are," Dan confirmed. "But someone brought a posting to my attention the other day that I think just might have egged Chuck on tonight." He confessed.

Blair immediately went over to the incredibly messy table where Dan's laptop sat under this morning's paper and a plate that held half a bagel on it. She cleared the junk away with a huff of disgust noting that Dan rolled his eyes at her, and lifted the lid of Dan's laptop. She hit the browser key and punched in Gossip Girl and was instantly overwhelmed by more than a dozen shots of tonight's incident all along with phrases suggesting a brutal love triangle unfolding in the UES. She scrolled back and also spotted the earlier one of her and Dan waltzing at the club and then cringed herself, knowing what it looked like. She scrolled back a few more days until she saw the post along with the photo of her and Dan's hug the night of the Empire function. Blair gasped at what Gossip Girl had implied.

"You see why Chuck might be upset?" Dan asked quietly. "He would hate the thought of the two of us together."

"But nothing happened, Dan. We're just friends," Blair insisted. "And why would even Chuck care if we were together anyway? He has a new girlfriend, remember. He has Raina!"

This made Blair break down and cry again. Dan got up off of the couch and walk over to where she was standing, hands covering her face once more. "Why didn't you tell me about this earlier, Dan?" she asked. She was upset.

"I'm sorry, Blair. I didn't say anything because we'd sworn off Gossip Girl and it isn't true. I knew this would just upset you."

"Well you were right. I am upset!" she admitted. "This isn't fair."

"I know it's not fair, Blair. But Chuck doesn't like to see you with anyone else. He's always had a hard tome with that. He's probably just hurt."

"But he doesn't want me," she sobbed. "And now he has Raina!"

"It'll be ok, Blair," Dan soothed as he took her into his arms once again to comfort her. "He just needs a few days to think about what he's doing. He'll come around."

Dan placed a little kiss on the side of her head and squeezed her tighter as she grieved some more about the man she still loved who couldn't seem to stop hurting her. His heart went out to her, and he was feeling protective. "Come on," he coaxed as he took her by the hand. "I'll show you where you can sleep tonight, ok?"

She nodded her head as Dan led her down the hall.

**XOXO**

**A/N**: Sorry about the Jenny/ Troll remarks…, but I can't help but want/need to slam the bitch every time I mention her name. I HATE HER!

And sorry if you think I'm being too hard on Chuck. I know this has bummed a few people out…. but he needs to figure this out the hard way!

If you can handle it, I dair you to read on….. please review!

Please note: the next chapter might take a few days to get out... I have to update my Ed/ Leighton fic and I head back to work Monday. I'll update as soon as possible (remember, the more reviews... the quicker I am motivated to update!)

**XOXO**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

**A/N:** Sigh, there's at least one in every crowd. This note is only addressed to the anonymous reviewer (whose comment I removed btw) and anyone else who really dislikes my work: If you really don't like my work or what I write about the characters I dislike, then please don't read my stories! There are a ton of others to read that may well celebrate the collection of trolls I like to trash! So please, go read one of them! Duh, it's a no brainer! Geeesh!

**XOXO**

**Chapter 5**

Blair had been lying awake for hours but was unable to sleep. She was still horribly disturbed and totally confused by Chuck's behaviour earlier. She was also confused about Dan. She was angry at him for not telling her about the Gossip Girl post on one hand, but was also blown away at how he had defended her tonight against Chuck.. It was all just too much and her head was spinning.

In addition to her racing mind, Blair was so uncomfortable she couldn't believe it! She was laying in the most uncomfortable little bed she'd ever experienced in her life, on probably the lowest thread count/prickly sheets imaginable. Her back ached, her skin itched, she was lonely and depressed, and she had to pee.

She groaned as she left the little bedroom and made her way down the dark hall into the absolutely filthy little bathroom of the loft. She could not fathom how Dan's family could have lived in this place together and only hoped that Rufus had had better domestic skills than his son obviously had. It gave her a greater appreciation for Dorota and for wealth in general. In fact, she thought, Dorota would have a field day here!

She flicked on the light and shuddered once again as she lowered her panties to hover over the seat. She swore the toilet hadn't been cleaned in ages, and she was afraid to sit. When she finished she washed her hands in the dirty little sink with the shrivelled bar of soap and wiped them dry on her borrowed t-shirt. The only towel in the bathroom was dingy and in a heap beside the filthy tub. She looked at herself in the toothpaste speckled mirror. She looked as bad as she felt.

She decided she should probably just head home. It was unlikely that Chuck would show up at her house at four in the morning to 'talk' to her anyways and she couldn't lie in that little bed again.

"Blair, what's the matter?" Dan asked as she turned off the bathroom light and headed down the hall to retrieve her clothes from the little bedroom. "Can't you sleep?"

"I'm sorry I woke you up," she apologised. "I think I'm just going to head home, ok?"

"No, Blair, it's the middle of the night. It's probably better that you stay," he stated. "Why can't you sleep?"

She walked into his room and sat down on the side of his bed. "I'm still pretty upset about what happened tonight," she confessed. "How's your face?"

"Not so good," he replied. "My eye is pretty sore. I might go and get it looked at tomorrow."

"I'm sorry about that too," she apologised again.

"Why are you apologising? You didn't hit me!" he joked.

She chucked a little. "I'm sorry that you got into a fight because of me," she responded. "I never thanked you for coming to my rescue. I really appreciate that, you know."

"Well, you're welcome, but it's nothing a friend wouldn't do for another friend," he informed her.

She smiled and nodded but couldn't help the tears from welling up again in her eyes anyways. The whole situation had been too much. She put her hands over her face and shook her head.

"Hey come here," Dan suggested as he lifted his arms out to encourage her into them in a hug. She slid closer to him and let him wrap his arms around her, pulling her body against his blanket clad one to comfort her.

She curled up next to him and let the tears fall once more, feeling surprisingly safe and comfortable in his arms. She let her body relax against his and soon began to settle down.

"Are you going to be alright?" he asked her softly after a few minutes.

She nodded her head in the dark. "Can you just hold me for a little while?" she asked.

"Sure," he replied. "Anytime. But you're freezing!" He lifted the covers up and placed them over Blair so that she was now lying completely next to him. He curled his arm around her waist and pulled her in closer so that her back was pressed against his chest.

Blair startled for a moment realising the predicament they were now in. She was laying in Dan Humphrey's bed, clad only in a t-shirt and panties, spooning with Dan, who was clad only in a set of boxers. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry over her current status. But when she realised how comfortable and warm she felt lying next to him, she forced her concerns to disappear.

Dan also had just realised what he'd done and how precarious the situation they were now in, was. He honestly hadn't intended for them to end up that way. He'd only intended to comfort Blair and help her through her grief. But now here he was, spooning a half naked Blair Waldorf in his bed! And the funny thing was, it didn't feel weird at all. It actually felt really good!

He smiled when he heard her sigh in contentment, and he held her a little tighter. "Are you ok?" he asked her

"No," she admitted sadly. "But I will be."

**XOXO**

"It's almost morning, Chuck" Raina snapped. "Where have you been?"

Chuck turned on the bedroom light and made his way over to his dresser for a set of pyjamas. He kept his back turned to Raina and forced himself not to explode again. "I've been at the hospital most of the night," he replied.

"Hospital? What happened?" Raina asked as she jumped out of bed and came over to where Chuck was standing. She put her hand on his shoulder and he flinched from her touch.

"Don't touch me," he growled.

Raina backed away and sat on the edge of the bed. "I'm…, I'm sorry," she apologised. "I'm rather concerned. Please tell me what happened, Chuck."

Chuck closed his eyes and clenched his fists for a moment. He needed to calm down and not take this out on Raina, he thought. Slowly he turned around and let her have a look at him. "This is what happened," he said through clenched teeth.

"Oh my God, Chuck!" Raina gasped as she covered her mouth with her hand. "What happened? Who did that to you?"

"What does it look like happened?" he asked. "I got in a fight, ok, Raina."

"How? Why? With who?" she asked all at once in disbelief.

"Listen, I really don't want to talk about it, alright?" he replied. "I just need to lie down."

He went into the bathroom and put on his pyjamas, grimacing when he got a closer look at his injuries in the mirror. He looked like the poster boy for a men's correctional institution. He slowly walked out into the living room where he poured himself a scotch, shot it back in one gulp, and then lay down on the couch.

Raina put on her robe and followed Chuck out to the living room. She placed a light blanket over his shoulders and leaned over to kiss his forehead, regretting it immediately when he winced at her touch. She sighed and went into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. She had a lot of thinking she needed to do.

**XOXO**

"I'm sorry, Dan, but I can not take a shower in that bathroom," Blair informed him the next morning. "It's absolutely disgusting!"

Dan chuckled a little and nodded his head. "Yeah, I know it is pretty bad. I'm not used to having to do too much around the house," he admitted. "But it's not like I have a personal Dorota at my disposal either, you know."

"Dorota would have a field day over here," Blair admitted with a laugh. "I don't think she's seen this much filth since the Monica Lewinsky scandal!"

Dan laughed at that and began to root through a cupboard looking for a few cleaning supplies. "I'll make you a deal," he offered. "I'll clean the bathroom for you and you can make me some breakfast, alright?"

Blair looked at him in disbelief. "I hope you can clean better than I can cook," she confessed. She shook her head in disbelief. He wanted her to prepare food! "There's a lot about me you have to learn, Humphrey."

"And I can't wait," he replied merrily as he headed down the hall with his bucket of supplies.

Blair shook her head and sighed. The boy was an entity unto himself, she thought. She realised she'd have to semi clean the kitchen before she could possibly think about actually attempting to cook in it. As she began to tidy, she reflected on the morning.

She had awoken quite peacefully finding herself sprawled across Dan in his bed, his arms around her. Although slightly aghast at that realisation, she calmly reminded herself that nothing had happened between them, so it was alright. In fact, it had felt wonderful waking up in another's embrace, she thought. She had placed her head back on his chest and looked around the room, startled when she saw a tiny pair of beady eyes staring at her from across the room. She bit back a laugh as she remembered her first discovery of Cedric, and how startled she had been to first hear that he had a doll as a child.

It made her think of how different an upbringing Dan must have had than Chuck. Dan had two loving, if not red neck, parents his whole life. His family experience had been rich and full. Dan had been showered in love his whole life, and although poor, they were happy together. He had belonged and was a part of something wonderful. Now, as an adult, that support came through in his character. He was not afraid to take risks to fight for what he believed in, despite how this might make him appear to others. He was strong and confident. He had stood up to all of them throughout high school and had continued to hold his head high into adulthood. Blair really admired him for that, although it had taken her years to come to this realisation. She looked again at Cedric and smiled. I mean the man was secure in himself enough to still display a doll he'd had as a child for goodness sake!

Chuck, on the other hand, had been born in and lived in despair. His mother had either died or hadn't wanted him from birth (Blair still wasn't really sure of the whole mother thing with Chuck. It was just was too confusing). He had grown up feeling like he was nothing but an embarrassment and a burden to his father. He had never belonged to anything that even closely resembled family. He'd never even felt love before he'd gotten involved with Blair. In fact, he hadn't even believed in love a few years ago, just as he'd never believed in Santa as a small child.

She remembered asking him once, when they were about eight years old, why he didn't believe in Santa Claus anymore. He had replied that when he was a little kid he asked Santa every year for only one gift. And every year he had been disappointed because he never got it. He soon realised that Santa wasn't real; it was his dad's money that bought the countless toys and other items around the tree every year. The gift he had always wanted and asked for every year wouldn't have cost anything at all. But it never came. Each year he had been disappointed again and saddened to know that he wasn't a good enough boy to get what he'd asked for. So he had finally just given up and stopped believing when he was about five years old. When Blair had asked Chuck what it was that he had always asked for, but never received, he'd replied, to belong to a family.

It had broken her heart then and it still did now. She knew that the reason Chuck had such difficulty with anything pertaining to love was because of the great negligence and pain he had suffered with as a child. He was so afraid of being disappointed in wanting to belong to someone still, that he sabotaged all of his relationships, just like he continued to do with her.

Blair understood this, and perhaps even loved him more for it. She loved Chuck so much that she had once told him that regardless of the worst thing he could do, she would stand by him through anything because she loved him. And she had meant it. The only problem was, the worst things always seemed to be to her, these days. And she didn't think she could take it anymore.

Once the Humphrey kitchen was reasonable, Blair scanned the area for food to cook. She could probably handle breakfast as long as it was no more difficult than eggs, but little else, and certainly not waffles! It amused her how the family seemed to have a preference for those horrid doughy squares! The problem was, there was nothing but bagels in the freezer beside the peas he'd had on his face last night, some instant coffee, some peanut butter and some cereal in the pantry. She was pleased to find some milk in the fridge at least, which was sitting beside a half empty can of what once might have been peaches. Her discovery, however, turned bitter when she saw the expiration date on the milk was weeks ago. She sighed and slit one of the frozen bagels in half and then slipped it into the toaster. She put water in the kettle and turned it on to make coffee.

Dan soon appeared from down the hall with a bag of garbage and his cleaning supplies. "So what did you cook me for breakfast?" he asked enthusiastically.

She looked at him like he had lost his mind and shook her head. The toaster popped and she threw the bagel on the plate. She passed it to him along with the jar of peanut butter. "I cooked you bagels!" she sarcastically replied back with the same amount of enthusiasm he had given her.

"Fantastic!" Dan stated with a big smile as he headed over to the surprisingly clean table. "Uh, Blair, where'd my knife go from here?" he asked.

She shook her head in disbelief and got him a clean one from the cutlery drawer. She went over and placed it onto his plate and laughed. "Oh my God, Humphrey you kill me!" she commented before she headed down the hall to inspect the bathroom.

**XOXO**

Raina went and collected the morning newspaper to read with her coffee. It was part of her daily routine. She found this was relaxing and was needed this morning in particular before she dare start to wonder about what was going on with her Chuck. She quickly scanned the headlines of the main parts of the paper, her horoscope and the funnies. She began to flip through the rest, not noting anything of particular interest until she came across the society section of the paper. The headline splashed across the front page made her spit out a mouthful of coffee.

**Bass Brawls for Blair!**

There in front of her was a full page color photo of Chuck and Dan engaged in battle, a distressed Blair in the background outside of some hotel called The Palace last night. She quickly read the scandalous article and knew there had to be some merit to it. After seeing what had happened to Chuck's face (and ribs too if the article was correct), she knew what they said had to be at least somewhat true. The article also made comment on Mr. Bass having attempted to abduct Ms. Waldorf who was out on a date with Mr. Humphrey! The story itself wasn't huge, but it did touch on the ongoing history of Chuck and Blair's relationship.

Raina was mad! She had not been made aware of a (not so distant) past history that Chuck may have had with Blair. It pissed her off. She did not like being anyone's rebound girl! And then she recalled Chuck's rude reaction to her comment about what a nice couple she had thought Dan and Blair were the other night. He obviously was still in love with the girl or he would have not gone to 'abduct' Blair last night, while she sat home alone waiting for him.

Raina went into the bedroom and put on some clothes. She needed to get out of the apartment. She marched past Chuck who was fast asleep on the couch snoring loudly. She refrained for a desire to cuff him good upside the head as she walked past him. She had to get out. She needed a walk to clear her head and to think. And then she was going to go and talk to Blair. Maybe she could give her some answers!

**XOXO**

**A/N:** So, who thinks the shit is about to hit the fan?

And ok, I seriously need to do the next chapter of my Ed/ Leighton fic…. NO MORE

PROCRASTINATING!

Anyways, if you liked it, please review it!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

Raina looked at the information she'd copied from Chuck's address book onto the scrap of paper she held in her hand, checking it's accuracy before she knocked on the door of Blair's apartment. She was nervous. The knots in her stomach made her question if she was doing the right thing or not.

She startled when the heavy Polish maid answered the door and looked at her sternly.

"Is…., is Blair in, please?" she asked.

Dorota gave the woman a thorough looking over before she nodded and replied, "What is name so I can give to Miss Blair?"

"Could you just tell her Raina is here to see her, please?" she asked the terrifying woman.

"Raina," Dorota repeated, not totally comfortable with the woman's name.

Raina nodded with a smile, "Yes, Raina."

Dorota gestured that Raina should come in and wait in the reception area of the apartment. She quickly ran upstairs and knocked on Blair's door. "Miss Blair," she said. "You have lady to see you."

Blair opened her bedroom door and looked at Dorota. "Well who is it?" she asked in an aggravated tone.

"Lady say her name is Raina," Dorota replied. "Like when the weather is bad outside," she added.

"I know what her name is like, Dorota," Blair huffed. "Did she say what she wants?"

"Yes, the lady say she want talk to you," the maid replied.

"That's a big help, Dorota. Thank-you," Blair dismissed. She walked downstairs shaking her head at Dorota while concern about the nature of Raina's call began to build.

"Well hello, Raina. How lovely of you to drop by," Blair welcomed in an overly sweet, superficial voice. "Please come in and sit down."

Blair suggested Raina remove her coat and join her in the living room. She sent Dorota to make them tea. When they were seated comfortably, Blair turned and smiled at her again. "Tell me, what can I do for you today?"

Raina smiled at Blair and thanked her for seeing her before she presented her purpose for visiting. She swallowed a lump in her throat noting how incredibly intimidating Blair was for such a tiny woman. She knew she would need to tread lightly.

"Blair, you know that I am new in your town," she began and looked to see that Blair nodded in agreement before she continued. "I don't know anyone here that I can talk to and I was hoping that you could help me with something." She looked at Blair and awaited her response.

Blair eyed Raina cautiously. She suspected this woman was a little brighter than the last troll Chuck had dragged home. She suspected why Raina was here, but wanted to see how this would unfold. If anything, she was intrigued by the possible chance of having a new game to play and a new plaything to play with. "Perhaps," she replied with disinterest. "Please continue."

Raina got out the article she had clipped from the paper earlier that morning. "Have you seen this?" she asked Blair as she passed the paper over to her.

Blair took the item and stared at its contents. She tried to control the color from rising to her face and retain her composure. "No, I haven't seen it," she replied honestly offering nothing else.

Raina was annoyed that Blair hadn't reacted to the article at all. The woman was a pro, she concluded. "Chuck came home this morning looking like he'd been jumped by a gang of hoodlums," she stated. "He'd been at the hospital most of the night."

"Is he…., is he alright?" Blair asked with concern.

Raina smiled. Blair's tone had just unknowingly told her an awful lot with the way she had asked that question. "He has stitches in his eyebrow, a swollen lip, some bruised ribs and a couple of broken teeth," Raina replied. "But he's going to be alright. I think his pride might be a little more hurt than his body."

Blair grimaced slightly as the woman described Chuck's injuries, and nodded as she handed Raina back the article.

She looked at Blair. "The man he fought with is your boyfriend, isn't he?" Raina asked cautiously.

Blair shook her head. "No," she replied honestly. "At least not really. He's just a good friend who has been helping me through a difficult time," she answered, regretting her words immediately. She had probably just told the woman too much.

"Why is that important, Raina? What do you want to know?" Blair asked with frustration.

Raina smiled at Blair. "I'm not the bad guy here, ok, Blair. But I'm concerned about what's going on with Chuck. I know the fight had something to do with you last night, and I need to understand what's going on."

"So then you should talk to Chuck about it," Blair quipped. "He wouldn't be pleased that you're over here looking for answers from me."

"I tried earlier, but he's not telling me anything," Raina sighed. "I know you two have a history together. And I think he still loves you," she admitted.

Blair looked up at Raina in disbelief. "What would make you think that?" she asked.

Raina smiled. "Well for one thing, I'm not stupid, Blair," she replied with a bit of sarcasm in her voice. "And second, ever since Chuck learned that Dan was getting closer to you, he's changed," she said. When she noticed the puzzled look on Blair's face she continued with another sigh. "Since the night at the Empire he's been distant, working really late, being moody, unwilling to…. umm... share a bed. And then for some reason he didn't come home after work last night, but went to the Palace and got in a fight with Dan instead."

"Oh," Blair replied flatly. She noticed Dorota hovering in the background with the tea. She nodded to her maid and then thanked her as she poured them each a cup. Dorota backed up and stood near the entrance way until Blair sent her a dirty look that told her to stop being so nosy and leave the room.

Blair looked back over at Raina.. "I'm sorry, but I really don't know what to say about that," she finally responded.

"You are aware that he still loves you, then?" Raina asked as she took her tea and had a sip.

Blair shook her head and sighed. "Chuck and I are over. He might love me on some primeval level, but he really doesn't care about me any more."

"Then why was he interfering with you and Dan at the Palace last night?" she asked again.

Blair put her cup down on the table. She was getting a little pissed off with the interrogation. "Listen, Raina," she began. "I don't know what your game is here. But you need to talk to Chuck about what he did to understand his intentions, not me. But good luck with that. I've been trying to figure him out for the last fifteen or so years, and still can't."

Raina smiled again, this time a little sadder. "And you still love him too. You are both in love with each other but just can't figure out how to be together. I think you're both far from being through!" she concluded. She finished her tea and stood up.

Blair shook her head again, looked at her feet, and refused to comment. She had to admit, the woman was good.

"Thank-you," Raina stated as she made her way to the reception area to retrieve her coat. "You've been most helpful."

**XOXO**

"What am I going to do Nathaniel?" Chuck complained to his buddy on the phone. "Blair won't answer my calls!"

"Well I know she didn't come home last night, Chuck. Maybe she just hasn't had time to check her messages yet," Nate answered knowing this would set Chuck off again.

Chuck didn't disappoint. "What do you mean she never came home?" he exploded into the phone. "Are you telling me that she spent the night with Dan fucking Humphrey?"

"I don't know, man," Nate replied calmly with a smirk as he placed the phone closer once more to his ear. "I went over to her place earlier today and Dorota said she still wasn't back, ok? But you need to calm down. Getting all worked up again isn't going to do you any good."

"How can I be calm when Blair is sleeping with Dan Humphrey?" Chuck roared.

"You don't know that they're sleeping together, yet," Nate replied with emphasis on the word yet. "You'll have to talk to Blair about it."

"But how can I talk to her if she won't return my calls, Nate?" Chuck was getting pissed off at his friend. He just didn't seem to get it.

But Nate got it all right. He was enjoying being the one in control of the conversation for a change. "It's all Tit for Tat," he replied.

"What. The. Hell . Are. You. Talking . About?" Chuck blared into the phone.

Nate laughed. "It's all Tit for Tat. It's simple, really," he tried to explain to his irritated friend. "Did you ever answer any of the calls or messages Blair sent to you over the holidays?" he asked, knowing very well that Chuck hadn't. This had been a source of major stress and grief for Blair over the entire holiday. In fact Nate had held her as she cried about it more than once. She had been devastated.

"No," Chuck admitted with a sigh. "I never even listened to them, to be honest with you. I…, I just didn't want to think about her, ok?"

"Well maybe this is Blair's way of getting you back, Chuck. Tit for Tat. Why should she answer your calls, when you couldn't be bothered to answer hers?" Nate asked with annoyance. For a smart guy, sometimes Chuck could be so dumb! "You know, Chuck, your refusing to return any of Blair's calls hurt her unbelievably this Christmas. She was crushed by you again!"

Chuck flinched at the comment. He knew he had hurt her, but hadn't really thought about how much. "I'm sorry," he said to his friend.

"Jesus, Chuck," Nate began to tear into him. "Maybe it's time you stopped saying sorry for what you've done and just stop doing shit to be sorry for. And while you're at it," he continued, "Maybe you should stop fighting against Blair and start fighting for her for a change!" Nate stopped, waiting for a response, but Chuck didn't reply. "Listen, man," he finally added. "I can't talk about this any more right now. You need to figure out a way to fix this." And with that, Nate hung up.

Chuck was stunned. His normally docile and complacent friend had just made some very good, although very painful, points. Chuck shook his head and went to pour himself a scotch. He opened his phone menu and went to his archived messages. There he'd created a folder he'd called 'Christmas, 2010'. He opened the file and cringed when he again saw the load of messages from Blair that he had chosen to ignore. He scrolled down through them until he found the one with the earliest date. Slowly he pushed play and listened.

'_Hi, Chuck, it's Blair. I'm just calling to see how your flight was and make sure you arrived safely. Give Jack a slap in the face for me, ok? _She had giggled_. Please give me a call to let me know how you're doing, alright? I'll talk to you later, bye.'_

He clicked on the following one that she'd sent a couple of days later_. _

'_Hey, Chuck, it's me again. I'm getting worried that you haven't called me back yet. Is everything all right? Please call me. Bye.'_

and then the next….

'_Chuck. Please. I'm beginning to get really worried about you. What's going on? Are you… are you alright? I'm worried. Please call me.'_

Chuck felt horrible. With each corresponding call, Blair became more distressed. He listened to a few more.

'_Chuck,' _she cried into the phone,_ 'I don't know what's wrong. Why won't you call me? or text me? Please send me an email or something, ok? I'm scared. I don't know what's happened to you and I don't know what to do. Please, If you're angry at me, at least tell me to fuck-off or something so at least I'll know you're alive.'_

He continued playing the messages. Soon they began to change. She had become sullen, emotional and was crying in several of them.

'_Chuck, I miss you. Please, I don't want you to hate me anymore. I'm sorry I said I needed to find myself and made you go away. I need you. I'd do anything to know you're all right.'_

'_Chuck, I'm sorry. Please call me.'_

'_I miss you Chuck. I really miss you.'_

There were several others. When he played the final message that she'd sent him on Christmas day, he began to sob. Her voice had been wracked with grief.

'_Remember when we were little kids and we did the gift exchange at school. And every year I couldn't figure out how you always managed to get my name. Well I was about twelve before I figured that you had either bribed or bullied whoever had pulled It, to trade with you so that you could be the one buying for me. Remember? I… I never told you, but I thought that was really sweet. I always got the best present in class. I miss you, Chuck. And I…., I love you. I'm sorry I hurt you. But you're a part of me and I need to know you're all right. Please call.'_

They had stopped there. She had finally given up hoping to hear back from him.

"Oh, Blair," he cried out loud. "I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry." He put his head down on his knees and began to sob.

Chuck was still sobbing when he heard a noise behind him. He turned around to see Raina standing behind him, with her hand over her mouth. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked angrily as he wiped his eyes off with his sleeve, and cussing when he realised he'd pulled on his sutures.

"Long enough," she replied.

**XOXO**

**A/N:** So the truth is out! Do you think Raina should go ballistic on Chuck?

Besides really good sex, is there anything better in life than Almond Roca!

If you liked it… please review it.

Please note... Chapter 7 was successfully uploaded on January 4th... for some reason there is a glitch in the stupid site and the chapter has now disappeared and won't upload again! Anyone who had subscribed to it, but didn't get a chance to read it yet will find the link corrupted. Sorry if that freaks anyone out, but I'll keep trying. The last glitch for writers was on the hit counter for about 4 or 5 days!

**XOXO**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**A/N: Thank you to those of you who are leaving reviews, including the anonymous ones! This really does keep me writing!**

**Also please note. I had a little uploading problem! I hope that didn't screw too many of you up. I am hoping it's fixed now!  
**

**XOXO**

Chuck was still sobbing when he heard a noise behind him. He turned around to see Raina standing behind him, with her hand over her mouth. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked angrily as he wiped his eyes off with his sleeve, and cussing when he realised he'd pulled on his sutures.

"Long enough," she replied.

**XOXO**

He shook his head and got up off the couch, putting his phone back in his pocket. His head and face were killing him, as were his ribs. He walked past Raina, ignoring her, and headed into his bathroom to take some Advil. He cringed once more after he looked at himself in the mirror. It would be weeks before he got his looks back! He knew he'd gotten the worst out of the brawl. He was humiliated! He was pissed! And he hated Dan Humphrey!

"We need to talk," Raina informed him when he returned to the living room.

He groaned loudly. "I am not interested in anything you may possibly have to say to me right now."

"Well that's too bad, Chuck. You're going to listen to this," she replied.

He buried his face in his hands and shook his head. Maybe he'd just leave, he thought. He needed to see the dentist later this afternoon, anyway.

"I went to see Blair this morning," she began, hoping that would get a reaction from him.

It did. His head snapped up instantly and he stared at her in disbelief. "You did what?" he bellowed.

She grinned, pleased that he was reacting as she believed he would. "I said, I went to see Blair this morning."

He grimaced. "And why would you have done that?" dreading what he might hear next from her.

Raina took the article out of her pocket and placed it on the coffee table in front of him.

Chuck picked it up and grimaced again, reliving the humiliation of being beaten up by Humphrey once more. He shook his head and placed it back on the table.

"So Blair's back home now?" he questioned.

Raina looked at him and nodded her head.

"So now what?" he asked sarcastically. "Are you going to leave me, too?"

She smiled and shook her head. "Not right away," she informed him. "But soon."

"Why would you stay?" he asked in disbelief.

"Because I need to make sure that you fix this thing with Blair before I go."

He looked at her, totally stunned. "What?"

"I know you still love her, Chuck," Raina replied.

He frowned at her and shook his head. "You don't know anything!" he snapped. He got up and headed towards the door to leave.

Raina smiled sadly, "And I know she still loves you, too."

Chuck stopped dead in his tracks. He sighed and looked back at Raina before taking his coat out of the closet. "She told you that?" he asked.

Raina sighed. "She didn't deny it, Chuck."

"She has a new boyfriend now. She's with Dan, remember?"

"She claims he's not her boyfriend. He's just helping her with something she's having difficulty dealing with. I believe you're that something, Chuck."

He put his hand over his eyes and sighed. "She told me to move on. She needed to find herself before we can be together. She doesn't want to be known as Chuck's girlfriend, but as herself!"

"Well, that makes sense. She's an intelligent woman, Chuck. She'd have no self respect if she couldn't have her own identity. I think you of all people would realise and respect that."

"I do!" he snapped.

"So then, what else happened between you?" she asked.

He looked at her, eyes blazing with visions of their war, Eva, Prague, Jenny Humphrey, the Empire, Jack. His stomach wrenched at the images and what his actions had done to he and Blair. The pit of fire burning within him seared his soul.

"What is it?" she asked noting the pain that flashed in his eyes.

He swallowed hard and shook his head. "I have to go."

**XOXO**

"I can't believe she took the bastard with her," Dan blurted as he walked in through Blair's apartment door.

"Well hello to you too, Humphrey," Blair laughed at a clearly frustrated Dan. "Who took who, where?" she asked.

"Sorry," he replied. "Ah, Serena. I'm talking about Serena. She took what's his face, that teacher guy. She took him with her to Santa Monica. They're still there."

"You heard from Serena?" Blair asked excitedly.

"What? No, Sorry…. Lily," he replied. "I called Lily this morning and she told me. I guess there was an issue with some credit cards or something."

"Oh," Blair said with a frown. She was really hoping her friend was back. She had missed her too over the holidays. She looked at Dan and smiled. He was obviously agitated by this. "I'm sorry about that. Do you want some dinner?"

Dan perked up at the mention of food. He was famished. But then he scowled. "Did Dorota make it?" he asked hopefully.

Blair smacked his arm.

"Ouch!" he yelped, holding his arm. "What'd you do that for?"

"You were obviously implying that I'm a bad cook," she answered.

He smiled at her. "I thought we'd already established that fact. But I must admit, you toast a mean bagel"

She laughed, taking him by the hand to drag him into her kitchen. "Come on, Humphrey, Dorota made extra knowing you'd be by."

While Dan ate dinner in the kitchen, Blair decided to check her phone messages on her cell. She was surprised to have over a dozen missed calls, then felt stupid when she realised that her phone had been turned off. She recalled she'd shut it off before going to the Palace the night before.

She scrolled through her messages, a little upset to see that they were all from Chuck. The times of the calls indicated that he'd tried calling her after the incident at the hotel. She was torn on whether or not she wanted to hear them. After all, he'd never returned any of her calls over the holidays, not caring enough to bother. But she was also curious to hear what he'd been so desperate to tell her last night. She wanted to know what possibly could have been so important that he would get in a brawl with Dan.

Her curiosity won. She pressed play to listen to the first message.

_ 'Blair, it's Chuck. I need to talk to you. Please! Don't do this to me Blair…... Blair! Come on Blair, answer the phone, Blair, please! Dammit!'_

And then another one_…. _

_'Please, Blair….. I need to talk to you. You can't do this. Please… , I…, I…. Ahhhh, fuck!' _

And then one more…..

_'Blair! Blair! Are you there? Come on, Blair. Pick up the phone! Pick. Up. The. Fucking. Phone! …..Shit!'_

She sighed and deleted the rest. After listening to the first three calls, she'd had enough. He wasn't making sense and she couldn't tolerate his ranting. So why had he come looking for her? Did it have something to do with the Gossip Girl Post? Was he jealous because he thought she was with Dan? And then she thought about what Raina had said earlier, '_You are both in love with each other but just can't figure out how to be together. I think you're both far from being through!' _

Blair sighed. The woman had been right. She knew on some level that Chuck loved her. But how could he love her enough to fight with Dan, but not enough to want to be with her? It didn't make any sense. And it broke her heart.

When Dan joined her later in the den, he found her crying. "What's wrong?" he asked as he stood before her.

She looked up at him and smiled through her tears. "Do you really need to ask?" She stood up and began to pace the room as she proceeded to tell him about her visit from Raina and Chuck's calls.

Dan admitted that the visit sounded pretty weird, but that Raina had made good points. "It's pretty obvious that you and Chuck still love each other, but you can't get it together for some reason or another. So here you sit alone, while he seeks refuge in Raina…"

"…. Just like you sit alone, while Serena goes off with her teacher." Blair completed as more tears threatened to fall.

She looked at him. "I'm sorry Dan," she said. "I know you're hurting too."

Dan smiled a sad smile and nodded. "Yeah, we both are."

He stood before Blair and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly and burrowing his face into her neck. "I don't want to alone any more," he whispered.

She pulled slightly away and looked at him. "Neither do I," she confessed.

Dan leaned in towards Blair and put a light kiss on her mouth.

"Dan… I don't know….," she began.

He leaned in once more and kissed her again, this time a little deeper. "Blair…" he said, and then kissed her yet again, turning it deeper when he felt her finally respond.

Blair had initially been stunned by Dan's kiss. She wasn't sure they should be kissing. After all, he was her friend, and he was Dan Humphrey. But his lips were so soft, and felt so good against her own, that she couldn't help but respond. As he deepened the kiss, she felt her own passion grow and she decided to let herself go. After a few minutes, they were becoming very aroused and were panting pretty heavily. She finally pulled away from him and looked deeply into his eyes. He smiled and nodded at her. She nodded back, took him by the hand, and led him upstairs.

They were both lonely, in love with someone else, and hurting. Surely this couldn't be wrong.

**XOXO**

Chuck wandered the streets outside of Blair's building for about an hour before he found the courage to see her. He wasn't sure what he was going to say besides apologise for not answering her calls over the holidays. Finally he got up the nerve and made his way to her apartment. He rapped on the door.

**XOXO**

Dan lay with his hand stroking Blair's head as she lay across his chest. "What are you thinking?" he asked.

"I'm thinking that that was nice…," she stated.

"But?"

"But I feel guilty." She leaned up to look at him with a sad smile. "I feel like I've betrayed both Chuck and Serena."

"Blair, don't," he told her. "They're both with other people. We've done nothing wrong."

She nodded her head and got up to use the washroom, unconvinced. Although she'd felt lonely and had appreciated the release, she still felt that they'd gone too far.

She remembered what it had felt like when she'd found out that Nate had slept with Serena all those years ago. It had devastated her. Now she'd done the same thing to the two most important people in her life. It didn't matter that they were both seeing other people right now. She was a creature bound to loyalty, a value she had just broken. Knowing that Serena and Chuck would most likely be hurt and disappointed in her was almost more than she could bear.

And then there was Dan, her recent enemy, turned friend, turned lover. She thought about how much he'd meant to her over the last couple of months. He'd been her only refuge when she had felt hurt, lost and alone over the holidays. Now she'd had sex with him. And she felt horrible!

It wasn't that the sex was bad. It had been alright. In fact it was comparable to when she'd slept with Nate, Good, but no spark. She'd gotten the release she'd needed sexually, but he just wasn't Chuck. And now it would probably change the nature of their relationship. She sighed, regretting what had happened between them, and fighting off tears.

When she was finished in the bathroom, she put on her robe. "I'm going to get a glass of juice," she told him. "Do you want me to bring you something?"

"I'll have a Coke, if you have any," he replied.

She nodded her head in response and turned to leave, feeling the tears starting to slip down her cheeks.

"Blair," he added. "It's going to be alright, ok?"

She stopped for a moment while he spoke and then continued on her way. She wasn't convinced.

While she was in the kitchen she continued to dwell on what had just happened while she was getting their drinks. She heard a knock on the door, wiped the tears away from her face and, not thinking clearly, answered it. She stood in shock when she saw Chuck's battered face in front of her.

"Chuck! What…, what are you doing here?" she gasped.

"I need to talk to you," he said as he pushed past her and made his way into the reception area. He sat down on the lounge seat and looked at his hands, waiting for her to join him.

Blair was stunned! She followed him in and commented, "This really isn't a good time. Can you come back later?"

"No, I need to do this now." He looked quickly at her, did a double take, and frowned. "Have you been crying?" he asked. He stood up and looked at her closely. "What's wrong, Blair? And why are you in your robe so early?"

"What's wrong?" she asked in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? You know exactly what's wrong! Plenty is wrong!" she snapped. "Just look at your face, ok? Let's start with that!"

He cringed. "I know. I'm sorry. I was so desperate to talk to you that I just reacted without thinking. I'm sorry if I scared you. You know I would never have hurt you!"

"You hurt me all the time," she replied quietly as more tears fell.

He walked over and wrapped her in his arms. "Blair…I'm…"

"You're what, Chuck? You're sorry?" Blair pulled away quickly from him. "You keep saying that, then you just hurt me again. Those words mean nothing coming from you!"

"I… I know. I really don't mean to keep hurting you, but I just do! But what I did at the Palace was wrong, Blair. I shouldn't have tried to force you in the limo. But I was so desperate. I had to talk to you!"

"Just like I had to talk to you over the holidays?" she cried. "You never returned any of my calls. Not even one! Not even to just let me know you weren't in another alley in Prague with a bullet hole in your belly! It didn't matter to you how worried I was over you again. Or that I was hurting for you and alone! Why would I ever talk to you again?"

"I didn't mean to hurt you, but I needed to put some distance between us," he cried. "I was afraid if I listened to your calls I would cave in and beg you to come back to me!"

"You never listened to them?" she startled. "Not even one?"

"Not until this morning," he admitted quietly.

She shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters, Blair! You were distressed. I never would have ignored them if I thought you were in pain!"

"Of course you knew I'd be in pain! You abandoned me again. Every time you do that it hurts me!"

"But you told me you didn't want to be involved with me anymore! You told me I could move on. What was I supposed to do?"

"Not abandon me. I never told you I wanted you out of my life! You are my life!" she cried. "You were supposed to stand by my side! You were supposed to fight for me! And most of all, you were supposed to love me!"

Chuck felt his own tears start to fall. "I did love you, Blair! I've never stopped loving you!" he cried. "Ever!"

"You could have fooled me!"

He walked over to her quickly and took her in his arms, his mouth tenderly kissing hers. He didn't care about the pain from his swollen lips, he just needed her so badly.

Blair startled and wanted to pull away from him, but was incapable. His pull on her soul was just too strong. They were two parts of a whole, destined to be together. Refusing his embrace was impossible.

At that moment Dan came bounding down the stairs clad in a pair of Flintstone boxers looking for Blair. "I'll settle for juice if there isn't any Coke….," he began as he popped into the reception area. He stopped at the sight in front of him.

"Oh!" he said. "I'll just….." He didn't finish his sentence, quickly leaving the room to dash back upstairs.

Chuck released Blair and stared at her in disbelief. "Just what the fuck is going on?"

**XOXO**

**A/N:** Ok, so I daired to do it! Ewwwwww! I really am not a Chair traitor! I promise! Sorry to all of my fellow Chair supporters, but the spoilers are telling us it's going to happen. So I tried to make it as least painful as possible! I give a prayer of thanks that this is a T rating and not my usual M sexually graphic stuff! I'd have hurled for sure!

So in turn, I apologize to my Dair lovers. I know having a heavier make out scene would have been what you wanted, but I could barely get through the kiss with the two of them! Honest, it goes against my grain so much, it's not even funny.

Over all, what do you think? Reviews are seriously appreciated!

**XOXO**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Chuck released Blair and stared at her in disbelief. "Just what the fuck is going on?" he blurted.

"Chuck, I…., I don't know what to say!" Blair cried.

He was dumbstruck. He'd hoped she would at least have denied it. But she didn't. And he was crushed. He was heart broken. Blair had slept with someone else. But worst of all, she'd slept with Dan Humphrey.

"I'm so sorry," Blair said. She hung her head, feeling both embarrassed and humiliated.

His head was pounding, his nerves on edge. His first impulses were shouting at him to do something.

He wanted to run up the stairs and pound the snot out of Dan. How dare he sleep with his Blair! But his face couldn't take another pounding should Dan retaliate, which he knew was likely.

He wanted to walk away from her, to leave, to pretend she didn't exist, that she was just some whore that he'd grown tired of. But he loved her and knew he could never get enough of her.

He wanted to yell, to call her every filthy name in the book. But he remembered Nate's words. They weren't together any more, he was with Raina. And she had every right to sleep with another man.

So instead of following his impulses, Chuck fought to compose himself and did as Nate suggested. He refused to do something he'd likely regret and have to apologise for again later. He'd stay and fight for her, despite how much he was hurting. So he swallowed the lump in his throat and his pride as well, no matter how much it was tearing him up inside.

Blair didn't know what to say to Chuck. She decided the best thing to do was to leave. But as she tried to rush past him, he reached out and grabbed her hand. "Don't leave," he said in a voice that was way calmer than she ever would have expected from him under these circumstances. "This time we both have to stay."

She stopped and looked at him, tears pooling in her eyes once more, and nodded.

He reached out and pulled her into a hug, holding her as tight as his bruised ribs would allow him to, as his tears of frustration and anger finally broke free.

**XOXO**

Dan paced the floor in Blair's room, now fully dressed. He was anxiously awaiting the screams he was sure would soon erupt from Chuck. He was surprised when they didn't come. In fact he hadn't so much as heard either of them raise their voice.

He'd been afraid things would get out of hand. Dan half expected Chuck to follow him up the stairs and try to fight him again. Not that he was afraid of Chuck, or anything. He'd already proven he could kick his ass, but he didn't want to put Blair through that again.

Blair! He couldn't believe that he'd slept with her! And now she was downstairs, kissing Chuck! He didn't know how he was supposed to feel about that. He was surprised to recognise that he felt rather jealous at the moment, but knew that was foolish. After all, he had no claim to her, she loved Chuck, just like he loved Serena. He'd known that from the beginning, he and Blair were just friends. Well, friends with benefits now. At least he was hoping there'd be another opportunity to have sex with her again; she'd been unbelievable in bed! The best he'd ever had, actually! But then again, she'd had Chuck as a lover for years, so he supposed, she ought to be good!

Dan groaned out loud. He needed to stop thinking about her like that. It was making him hard again! But he was also restless. What was happening downstairs? He sort of wanted to go and peak, but would feel like an idiot if they caught him.

Maybe he should leave. He could go out the servants' staircase down the back way of the condo. But if things got out of hand with Blair and Chuck, she might need him again. What Dan really wanted was to go and hit the son of a bitch again. He couldn't believe that Chuck was back once more!

Dan finally came up with a plan and whipped his cell phone out of his pocket.

**XOXO**

The house phone began to ring in the kitchen. Blair pulled away from Chuck. "I…, I think I should get that," she stated. She wiped her eyes and went to answer it.

"Blair, It's Dan," he said to her.

"Hi?" she replied in question.

"Are you…., ah, is everything all right down there?" he asked. "I'm getting kind of worried."

"I'm alright," she answered.

"Does he… does Chuck know about…., about it?" he asked.

"It? Oh, yes, it! Yes, unfortunately he knows."

"Wow, I expected to hear a lot of yelling, or have to defend your honour, or myself, or something like that. How is he handling it?" he inquired. "I'm curious."

"Listen, I should go. Can you see yourself out" Blair asked. ""I'll call you later."

"What? Oh, sure, of course," he replied. This whole scenario was rather awkward. He didn't think he should go. "But are you sure? Is he stable?" he asked. "I don't want to go if there's going to be any trouble."

"I'm sure," she said. "And Dan, thanks, ok?"

Dan sighed into the phone. He wasn't sure this was such a good idea. That man was a lunatic, after all. "Um, ok, I'll just use the servants' stairwell," he told her.

"Ok, thank-you," she said and hung up. She braced herself on the counter in the kitchen. She could feel Chuck behind her.

"Blair….," he begun.

Blair turned around and raised her eyes to him. The sight of him made her want to start crying again. His one eye was swollen, but both of them were brimming with more tears. "I don't know what to do," he admitted.

"What do you mean?" she asked as she brushed past him on her way back into the reception area. She sat on the seat, leaving room for him to join her.

Chuck sat and sighed. He closed his eyes, trying to choose his words wisely. "I don't know how to react to this," he said. He swallowed hard and grimaced at what he had to say next. "Do you love him?" he whispered painfully. He forced himself to look at her, dreading the answer he was sure he'd hear.

She looked over at him and winced at the pain she saw written across his face. "Dan and I are just friends, Chuck," she answered. She felt her cheeks turn bright red and she looked down at her hands.

"But you were with him!" he charged. "You had sex with him!"

"It was a mistake, Chuck. "It just happened…."

Chuck winced. He'd heard that line from her before. Images of their grad ceremony flashed across his memory. Gossip Girl had just dropped every gossip bomb she had. And he'd learned that Blair had slept with Jack on New Years. It had 'just happened' with him, too. His stomach churned and bile rose in his throat. He felt himself blanch. It was taking every ounce of energy he possessed not to run.

"We were both hurting and lonely Chuck. Dan was missing Serena, and I…, I….." She couldn't finish. She shook her head and sighed.

"I need you to finish that sentence, Blair," he said. He forced himself to look at her.

Slowly Blair raised her eyes to meet his. She swallowed hard and fought to keep from crying. "….I was missing you too, Chuck."

"So you slept with Dan because of me?" he snapped. "Fuck!" he yelled. "I can't believe I did it again!" He was so angry at himself, at her, at Dan and the whole situation. His head was screaming for him to leave. He stood up and headed for the door. "I should go…..," he said.

"No!" Blair snapped. "You can't leave me like this, Chuck. Not again." She followed him to the door and stood in front of it, blocking his way. "You said we need to fix this!"

Chuck stared at her. "Let me go, Blair!"

"No!" she insisted. "We're going to fix this tonight."

He shook his head. "You know maybe Nate's right. Maybe you're better off with Dan. At least he'll probably treat you right. I can't seem to do anything right myself!"

"Nate said that?" she asked in disbelief. "Why would he do that?"

"Maybe he's sick of watching me ruin your life," he said sadly. "It's all I'm obviously capable of doing."

"Stop!" she yelled. "Stop beating yourself up!" She hated to see him hurt himself.

"Let me go, Blair!" he insisted again.

"No!"

"Please Blair, let me go!" he begged.

"No, Chuck. You need to stay."

Why? Why do you want me to stay?" he asked

"Because we need to fix this," she repeated.

"But why, Blair?" he asked again. "Why should I? I'll probably only fuck up again. So why should I stay?"

"Because," she answered.

"Because why? Tell me, Blair!" he insisted. "Why. Do. You. Want. Me. To Stay?"

"Because I still love you, Chuck!" she yelled. "I still love you, ok? And if you walk out that door right now before we fix this, I'm afraid you'll be gone forever!"

"Maybe that would be for the best," he admitted again sadly. "I'm never going to be your knight in shining armor, Blair. I fuck up. A lot! And you seem to be the one on the receiving end of that every time. So maybe you should let me leave and you can have a safe life with someone….," he paused to close his eyes, swallow another lump and then continue. "….With someone like Dan Humphrey."

Blair looked at him in disbelief. "Don't you get it? I don't want Dan Humphrey. I've never wanted anyone else but you!" she cried, tears falling on her down her cheeks once again. She reached out and took him into her arms, sighing with relief when she felt him finally reach up and hold her back. "All I ever wanted was you!"

He buried his face into her curls and let his own tears come once again.

Blair could feel him trembling in her arms. She ran her hands up his back. "It's going to all right, Chuck," she told him. "We'll work thorough this."

**XOXO**

After they had both settled, Blair saw Chuck to the door. Although reluctant to leave now, he realised the inappropriateness of his staying the night with her. "I need to talk to Raina," he admitted before he left. "And you should talk to Dan,"

She nodded as he held her tightly against him again before he kissed her gently goodnight, "I love you," he promised.

"Me too," she said as he shut the door.

**XOXO**

**A/N: **I was really struggling with how I wanted this scenario to go down. A classic Chuck melt down may have been a more in character thing for him to do, but I just couldn't do that to him again.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Nate was nearly doubled over with laughter as Dan described the scene at Blair's earlier.

"And the look on Chuck's face was indescribable," Dan expressed. "Like he was going to keel over with a heart attack or something."

"What'd he do?" Nate snickered, trying hard to contain himself. But the picture of Dan in his boxers in front of an enlightened Chuck was almost more than he could bear!

"I…, I really don't know!" confessed Dan. "I mean I totally freaked out! I ran upstairs and got dressed as fast as I could in case Chuck wanted to duke it out again." Dan looked at Nate, feeling annoyed that he was finding it all so amusing.

Nate now had tears running out of his eyes. "No, Chuck wouldn't want to go at it again." He replied once he'd caught his breath. "He's pretty banged up from the last time he wanted to fight you."

"What should I do about Blair?" Dan asked. "I mean, I really like her."

"But you know she loves Chuck, right? I mean go for it if you want to, if she's not going to be with Chuck, that is. 'Cause you know how tight those two are, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Dan acknowledged. "But here's the thing. I really, really like Blair. Like way more than I thought I would. And she's so fucking sexy…"

"Dude, boundaries!" Nate snapped, putting his hands over his ears. "She's my friend, remember. And my ex!"

"Yeah, right. Sorry," Dan apologised with a laugh. "But seriously! Wow! Why'd you ever let her go?"

"I was stupid, that's why," Nate answered with a huff. "I didn't realise what I had at the time. I…., I wanted Serena." Nate shook his head remembering years ago how he'd ended things with Blair, and then tried to get her back for his father's sake. He'd hurt her. He sighed. "And then Blair got involved with Chuck. And they're just so good together. But he has this thing where he always seems to hurt her….."

"Yes, he seems very apt at doing that," Dan agreed. He knew how much Chuck could and had hurt Blair. After all, he'd been trying to help her de-Chuck-ify all through the holidays. And now he was in over his head. "So what are you saying I should do about Blair?"

"I don't know, to be honest with you. I think it's good to be there for her, but remember that Chuck and Blair are in love. Maybe Chuck's ready to deal with what that really means this time."

"Well he better figure it out soon" Dan snapped. "Because if he doesn't want her, she's mine!"

**XOXO**

Chuck barely slept that night, thinking of Blair. And Dan. And everything else that had happened over the last few months. He lay on the couch staring at the ceiling most of the night.

The next morning he walked into his bedroom to get a change of clothes so he could get ready for a meeting he had in a couple of hours. He expected to find Raina asleep. Instead, he found her packing.

"You're leaving?" he asked.

She looked up and smiled at him. "I am. How's Blair?"

Chuck smiled back and shook his head. "She's confused I think."

"And you?"

"I'm confused too," he admitted. Chuck sat on the side of bed facing Raina and scowled. "When I went there tonight, she and Dan had obviously just had sex." He swallowed a lump in his throat and looked at his hands. "I….., I didn't know what to do," he confessed.

Raina sat down and turned to face Chuck. "So, what did you do? I don't see any more stitches…,." she said jokingly.

"I fought off every instinct I had knowing my reaction would probably drive a bigger rift between us," he admitted. "But it was hard."

"And?"

"And it seemed to work. I mean we talked. I just can't get the thought of her with that slimey…"

"Chuck!" Raina interrupted. "You need to stop right there. Up until a few days ago, you were sleeping with me, not really caring how it might affect her. So give the girl a break! She's human! "

He looked at her, not seeming to get it.

She stood up again and began to pace, then let out a large sigh. "I think it's time you stopped seeing your girlfriend as some sort of perfect deity. She's human, allowed to have dreams and goals and a life that's separate from you! Blair has every right to sleep with Dan, or Nate or any other guy she chooses to, if you're not dating her. And she has the right to seek her identity in areas that don't fall within your realm. She is an independent woman, Chuck. You need to give her a break."

"I know she is, Raina, but…"

Raina held up her hand to silence him. "There are no buts here! You either love Blair for who she is, or you need to cut the cord and let her go. She's a dynamic person. If you don't want her, then let her be with someone who does."

"I do want her!"

"Then fix this! Open up your eyes and your heart to her and stop sabotaging your relationship."

He looked at her questioningly. Just how the hell did she know so much about them?

"I Goggled you. And Blair. Gossip Girl has quite the history on both of you….," she said with amusement.

Chuck groaned. "So you know….."

"About the war? The Brooklyn trolls? Your uncle? Yeah, Chuck. I know!" she confirmed. "In fact, there was so much information, I didn't have enough time to even read it all! You really are something else, you know!"

He looked at her and smirked.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so cocky, Chuck. I think Blair's a saint for putting up with your antics for this long. For your information, intelligent women don't like that shit! And what you've done is deplorable! The girl really must love you."

He cringed at her words. "I hope so," he sighed.

Raina closed her suitcase and walked over to Chuck. "You know you need to resolve what happened before you went to Prague or it will never work between you two?"

"What do you mean? We were both to blame. She knows that!"

"Does she? I think you need to think about that again! That was some major shit that happened between you. You'll need to resolve it if you ever want to make this work between you and Blair."

He shook his head. The thought of bring up all of those unpleasant memories was awful! "Why do you care, Raina. Blair's a stranger to you and I'm …"

"And you're a little boy who needs to act out and hurt others when he doesn't get his way," she replied matter-of-factly. "And I do care," she continued, "because I am a sucker for real love. And what you and Blair have is that. So, despite the fact that you've used me as a rebound, I'd like to do what's right. And I think you and Blair are what's right! So you need to do right by her and fix this thing between you, ok?"

Chuck smiled and nodded at her. "I'll try," he promised.

She smiled at him and kissed him softly on the cheek. "I've subscribed," she told him.

He looked at her questioningly.

Raina laughed. "To Gossip Girl! I'll be watching to see what happens." She picked up her bag and walked to the door of Chuck's suite. Chuck held the elevator door for her. "Goodbye, Chuck."

"Bye" he replied. She was quite the woman, he thought. She could have been a real bitch about this, but had chosen to deal with it by helping him and Blair. He sighed again. He needed to get ready for that meeting and then go and see Blair again.

**XOXO**

"Thanks for meeting me for dinner, Blair" Dan said as he held her chair for her. He was feeling really nervous. He had texted her from school wanting to meet up and see what had happened last night.

"No problem, Dan. I told you we'd talk later," she replied as she opened her menu.

"I was expecting you to call last night."

"Sorry," she apologised. "It was late by the time Chuck left. I figured you'd be asleep."

"Chuck didn't stay?" he asked with a big smile.

"Of course not, Dan!" Blair said with disgust. "Ewww! I could never be with two guys in the same day! That's just….. Ewwwww!"

"Sorry, I just figured that…., well, you know!"

"It's ok, Humphrey. I'm confused too!" she whined. She dropped her head on the table and covered her head with her arms. "Arrrrrgh!" she squawked.

"Why are you confused?"

"I mean I love Chuck. I really, really love him. But I'm scared," she admitted. "He wants…. No, I mean, we want to try and work things out together…."

"But?"

She lifted her head up and put her hands on the table, unconsciously fidgeting with a tiny tear on the corner of a menu. "But when I think we're there, he always seems to ruin it," she said.

"So then are you sure that getting back together with him is what's best for you, then?" he asked hopefully.

"I want to say yes. But like I said, I'm scared!"

"Then don't do it Blair! I don't want to see you hurting again because of him." He reached out and took her hands in his. "I don't want him to hurt you."

Blair looked up into Dan's eyes. She saw more than friendship there. She withdrew her hands from his. "I appreciate that," she replied and shook her head. "I really do. You've been a very good friend and all…., but we're friends, Dan. Last night shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry."

"I'm not!" Dan stated.

Blair looked at Dan. He was hurt.

"I'm not!" he repeated. "I mean fuck, Blair, the guy was with another woman…. flaunting her, in fact, all over the place! You guys weren't together any more and we're both consenting adults! It wasn't wrong!"

"That's not why it was wrong Dan," she said calmly. "It was wrong because you're my friend and because we're both in love with other people."

"But that doesn't matter…"

"Yes, it does, Dan! It matters to me! That's not who I am! I'm….. I'm sorry," she apologised and got up to leave. "This was a mistake," she said as she left the restaurant.

Dan watched her walk away. He was devastated.

**XOXO**

Chuck greeted Blair as she stepped off the elevator. He immediately wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her scent as he held her close. "Thank-you for coming," he said.

She rested her head on his chest, and sighed as he held her. She wished it could be this easy, but knew it really wasn't.

He felt her stiffen and sighed himself as he released her. He took Blair by the hand and walked her into the living room. They sat down on his chesterfield.

"Raina?" she asked.

"She left this morning."

Blair nodded. "How'd it go?" she inquired.

"Surprisingly well, actually!" he replied with a smile. "She gave me some good advice."

"Oh!" Blair was startled. "What did she say?"

Chuck took her by the hands and smiled again. "Well let's just say she told me I was a jerk and I needed to amend my ways."

"Oh!" she replied again with a laugh.

He gently squeezed her hands. "I need you to know how important you are to me."

She nodded at him and let him continue.

"And there've been times I've behaved really horribly to you in the past"

Blair looked down at their intertwined hands and frowned. He had.

"I know this doesn't excuse my behaviour, but you need to know that whenever I treated you poorly, was when I was hurting and afraid.

"What do you mean you were hurt and afraid?" she asked.

"When I slept with Jenny," he said with a grimace, I thought that you didn't want me anymore. I was afraid I'd already lost you and it hurt my heart."

"But I didn't …..," she began.

He held up a hand to stop her and squeezed the other one again gently. "I know that now, Blair, but at the time I didn't. I know it was the wrong thing to do, regardless of the circumstances, but I did it because of my emotions."

Chuck talked about some of the other issues where he had made poor decisions that had torn them apart, including this latest time where he'd snubbed her over the holidays. "…. and when you told me you didn't want to be known as my girlfriend, it happened again," he admitted. "I was devastated and all I could think about was that you didn't want to be with me any more. It scared me. And I was hurt."

"You were hurt?"

He nodded and looked at her.

"I'm sorry, Chuck. I didn't mean to hurt or scare you. I just wanted you to understand that I needed to become more than just your girlfriend."

He shook his head and smiled a sad smile. "Just my girlfriend," he repeated.

"No Chuck, I don't mean it like that!" she cried. "I love you, ok? And I don't think I will ever not love you, despite all of the things that have happened between us. But I need to love myself, too. I need to make a name for myself in this world. A name that is separate from yours. And that's not because I don't love you. It's because I love you so much that I want us to be together forever. I want it to work. And that's not likely to happen if I feel bad about being me!"

"I love you," he told her. "And I know that you need to develop your own identity. I just don't understand why we can't be together while that happens."

"I know," she agreed. "I thought I needed to do this on my own. But I missed you too much, too," she admitted. "I don't want to be alone."

"Is that why you started seeing Humphrey?" he asked her painfully.

Blair cringed. "Dan and I started hanging out before Christmas when we went after Juliet. Then during the holidays we were both feeling so alone. He'd been abandoned by Serena…..," she stopped speaking as tears welled up and began to spill down her cheeks with the memory. She paused to wipe them.

"….. And you were abandoned by me," he concluded for her.

Blair nodded her head. "But we were just friends, Chuck. I swear! And then after you came back from Australia with Raina, things just sort of happened." She wiped her eyes again and looked down into her lap. "I was hurting too," she replied.

Chuck slid over closer to Blair and wrapped his arms around her, placing a light kiss on her forehead.

"I'm sorry," he apologised sincerely."I know how important Christmas is to you. I'm sorry I didn't answer your calls."

"I really was afraid that something happened to you again Chuck," she explained again. "You can't just disappear on me like that. Not after everything that's happened."

He nodded his head and held her a little bit tighter. "I know," he admitted. "I won't do that again. I promise."

He held her for a few minutes and then got up the courage to ask. "So what's happening with Humphrey now?"

Blair pulled out of Chuck's arms. "I told him that our sleeping together was a mistake. He loves Serena, and I love you. On that basis alone, it was wrong."

Chuck nodded his head. "That's one reason why I love you. You have such a moral heart. It compliments my black one."

Blair laughed a little. "I think I've hurt him," she admitted.

"It's Humphrey! He'll get over it!" Chuck sneered.

"Chuck!" Blair snapped. "He was my friend. I feel bad that I've hurt him!"

"Of course you do, Blair. You're a good friend. But Dan needs to respect how you feel too."

"I know," she agreed. "And I think he will. He was just surprised, is all."

"I really want this to work between us this time," Chuck told her again. He pulled out a card from his shirt pocket and handed it to her.

Blair looked at it questioningly.

"It's the name of a highly recommended relationship counsellor," he answered. "I've set up an appointment for myself for next Monday. I want to make sure I do this right from now on. I know I need help."

Blair smiled at him and felt the tears coming again. This was a huge step for him. "I'm so proud of you," she told him.

"Well, I'm not perfect yet!" he replied with a chuckle. "But I promise I'm really going to try." He pulled her back into his arms and sighed with relief as he felt Blair relax against him. "And if you'd like to come too, they also do couples therapy."

"That might be a good idea," she agreed. She lay with her head on his chest, just over his heart. She loved the sound. She stroked her hand up his side, bringing it around to his neck and then up where she caressed his jaw line. "I love you, Chuck."

Chuck lowered his head and when Blair raised hers toward him, he caught her mouth in a searing kiss. She snaked her arms around his neck and ran her fingers into his hair while he deepened the kiss. Chuck moaned as he felt her lips part, permitting his tongue inside. "I love you, too," he responded before diving in for another sultry kiss.

Blair climbed onto his lap, groaning herself when she felt him growing hard under her. Chuck hissed when he felt her gently grind against him.

"I want you so much," she purred into his ear as his hands began to caress her bottom, causing moisture to pool between her legs.

"Me too," he growled as he delicately bit into her neck.

Chuck stood and lifted Blair up into his arms, carrying her into the bedroom. Carefully, he lowered them onto the bed. He loved this woman more than he could ever even fathom.

When they made love that night, they both felt consumed in their love for one another.

Chuck knew that he'd made a step in the right direction. This time they would succeed in their relationship. He knew it would be hard work, but together they'd work things out. And this time, he knew he wouldn't ever hurt her again. He wouldn't dair!

**FIN**

**XOXO**

**A/N:** Ok, I know it's kind of a cheesy ending. I got really disheartened again after seeing the promo for the next new show, and just had to let it go…. I like my take on Chair much better then the shows! Theirs just bums me out! Remember, this is how I'd like it to play out, and if could, I'd make sure it did.

Additionally, some readers have lost interest. I can tell when the reviews drop off that it's time to end things, and I'd rather end cheesy then just stop writing altogether (like so many do… this drives me nuts!).

Anyway, I'm going to start a new Chair AU story soon called 'On the Other Side'….I'm really excited to start it. Watch for it. I'm not sure if it'll be a T or M yet. Thoughts?

**Please leave a final comment/ review. I appreciate the support of everyone who stood by me through this little tale. So, until we meet again, TTFN….**

**XOXO**


End file.
